GEN Z PIONEER
Moved to action by the impact of pollution on his home town, Fionn Ferreira has created a way to remove microplastics from water.
Arising science star has invented an innovative device to tackle the microplastics problem. Growing up on the remote coast of Cork, Ireland, 20-year-old inventor Fionn Ferreira was lucky to experience a childhood in the beautiful countryside, his days spent exploring the coastline in his kayak. Matching his love for the outdoors was a passion for invention; he liked to take things apart to figure out how they worked. But as a Gen Z kid, Ferreira has inherited a planet in the grips of an environmental crisis, and he was soon seeing the impacts of climate change and pollution in his home town. “I could not help but notice the environmental devastation caused by plastic,” says the ‘anti-plastic inventor’ now studying chemistry at university in the Netherlands. “I was simultaneously angered and wanted to take action.”
Unlike plastic bottles and bags you might see washed up on the shore, microplastics are tiny fragments less than 5mm in size, making them hard to identify and even harder to collect. Last year, scientists discovered ‘hotspots’ on the ocean floor where plastic particles have settled in massive amounts, identifying 1.9 million pieces of microplastics in just one square metre of the ocean floor.
The pollution has devastating effects on both marine life, bird life and humans, with one recent study finding microplastics in drinking water, table salt and the air we breathe.
Keen inventor that he was, Ferreira built his own spectrometer, a device to identify the amount of microplastics in the water, which led him to coming up with his novel solution. “After seeing a rock on the coastline of oil spill residue, I saw many plastics stuck to it, which inspired me to find out why.
“I did some tests and actually realised that oil could be used to gather up microplastics. I was inspired to make oil magnetic by using iron to make it magnetic.”
The combination of cooking oil and iron oxide (rust) powder creates a magnetic liquid called ferrofluid, which – when mixed with water – attracts microplastics which can be removed using magnets. Initial tests proved that the invention works incredibly well, extracting 87 per cent of microplastics in the water.
The invention saw Ferreira take home the grand prize in the 2019 Google Science Fair, winning him $50,000 and garnering him praise in the science community.
While still in the development stage, Ferreira sees big potential for this technology, with the opportunity to use it to clean other contaminants from the water, and exploring how it can be used in the beverage and drinking water industries. “The aim is for application in wastewater treatment as well as drinking water treatment. I am currently investigating ways this could also be built into already existing freight ships for microplastic removal at sea.”
Inventions like Ferreira’s have huge potential in tackling the plastic problem, but the scientist is aware that the long-term solution is to stop using plastic in the first place. “I am studying chemistry for a reason. I believe that by redesigning plastic or making new, better materials we can combat this problem in the best possible manner.”
Ferreira is also passionate about inspiring young scientists like himself. Along with developing his microplastic device and university studies, he’s building a platform to empower young inventors with tools and methods to bring their ideas to life, including a science cooking show for children. “Liquid nitrogen in cake? Why not? The show aims to give a young audience a repertoire of recipes but also the scientific backstory behind them,” he says. “I feel that more young people need to let their ideas run free and invent.”
“I FEEL MORE YOUNG PEOPLE NEED TO LET THEIR IDEAS RUN FREE AND INVENT.” FIONN FERREIRA